Bathroom Visits Limited for Some Students at Illinois High School

Students at Evergreen Park High School in Illinois may be well-advised to avoid excessive water intake — or find themselves with longer school days.

Some teachers there have implemented a policy of allowing each student only three bathroom visits during class each semester. Any subsequent visits require students to make up the class time later in the day.

While the school and teachers cite the need for the rule because of students who abuse bathroom privileges to simply skip out on class, some parents are unhappy about it, saying everyone is having to pay for the sins of a few.

“It’s not only that they have to make up the time. It takes up time after school when they may be in a club or have a team practice or catch a bus,” said mom Linda Gigliello. She also added that her 15-year-old daughter has had urinary tract infections in the past that may be exacerbated by the new bathroom policy.

Cathi Diamond, another parent, said, “There’s no trust of the parents. There’s no trust between teachers and students. There’s no trust the teacher will know when a student genuinely needs to go or when they use the washroom as an excuse to get out of class.”